rant

1 of 2

verb

ˈrant 

ranted; ranting; rants

1

intransitive : to complain loudly, angrily, or unreasonably

… films and books ranting against corporations and the gun lobby …

—Joel Stein

"You can rant and rave all you want," she said, "but it's not going to change things."

2

transitive + intransitive : to talk or recite in a noisy, excited, or bombastic manner

… barkers ranting at the crowds …

—Gerald Shapiro

… the actor who rants Shakespeare …

—H. E. Clurman

ranter noun

rantingly

ˈran-tiŋ-lē 

adverb

rant

2 of 2

noun

1

a(1)

: a long, angry speech or piece of writing : tirade

went on a rant about the price of gas

… in Walden's transcendental rants I found all my angsty teenage convictions gloriously and authoritatively ratified.

—M. Allen Cunningham

(2)

: a bombastic extravagant speech

… two other boys … happened on a street orator; tiring of the rant, one boy pushed the speaker's hat off with a stick …

—Oscar Wilde

b

: bombastic extravagant language

The speeches were full of rant, cant, and vanity …

—Ursula K. Le Guin

2

dialectal British : a rousing good time

Synonyms of rant

Verb

• huff
• rave

Noun

• tirade
• diatribe
• attack
• criticism
• lecture
• jeremiad
• sermon
• harangue
• philippic

Examples of rant in a Sentence

Verb

“You can rant and rave all you want,” she said, “but it's not going to change things.”

He ranted that they were out to get him.

Noun

after complaining about the hotel's lousy service, the woman went off on another rant about the condition of her room

instead of addressing the current crisis, the mayor's speech was a lot of rant emphasizing his accomplishments

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

So Republicans are desperate for something, anything, anyone — a fall guy, a scapegoat — to rant against, whip up the Republican base against, and raise money for their fall campaigns. — Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026

Membership was open to the lazy, the unemployed and anyone who mostly ranted. — Penny Abeywardena, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026

Noun

Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham addressed a viral pre-game rant by their head coach after the Indiana Fever's 106-92 win over the New York Liberty on Tuesday. — Jackson Thompson Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 Aug. 2026

Wolfson suggested the exhibit could integrate the video of Galliano’s rant directly, alongside commentary on it. — Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

obsolete Dutch ranten, randen

First Known Use

Verb

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1650, in the meaning defined at sense 1a2

Phrases Containing rant

• on a rant

Rhymes for rant

• ant
• aunt
• cant
• chant
• gant
• lant
• pant
• plant
• quant
• sant
• scant
• slant

Kids Definition

rant

1 of 2 verb

ˈrant 

: to talk loudly and wildly

ranter noun

rant

2 of 2 noun

: loud and wild speech